all maps by Anonymous

Treasure Map

The other day I received an envelope from an anonymous person in the Philadelphia area. Inside was this map along with the following note: "My sister sent this to me along with the latest pictures of her kids. No explanation about the map, but I hope Matt found the treasure."

Maps Help Fixing Problems

Anonymous declared, "Maps help fixing problems." Indeed. This map was tremendously useful for anonymous when traveling from Jayapura, Indonesia to Davao City, the Philippines. Anonymous tells us, "there were no scheduled flights or ferries, but this map helped us navigate the pirate infested Seas of Sulu and Celebes." [larger version]

Illegal Ticketing

Anonymous also sent this map documenting a traffic ticket on the corner of Cinthia Street and Doheny Drive in West Hollywood. Anonymous told us, "This motorcycle cop gave me a ticket at this intersection. I broke the law, but the law was wrong."

Drawn While Commuting

This map was sent to us with the following description: "This is the United City of Saint Jerome...a tad bit dated since the West Mersey Parkway has been completed (2007). With 15.8 million people, it's not for the faint at heart...lol...I started drawing this map on the Red Line in D.C. on my way home from work back in 2005. Unfortunately, the contributor didn't share his or her name. If you drew this map and didn't intend to be anonymous, please let us know.

Hostel Map

This found map was sent to us with the following description: "This is actually a map of the Tengger Caldera in East Java. It shows the 3 volcanoes in the area, including Gunung Bromo, and the path to go from the village of Cemoro Lawang to the top of Gunung Penanjakan for an impressive view of the 3 volcanoes. It also shows the way back crossing through the big caldera crater."

The Sunshine State

Another map from the Philly Zine Fest. This map was drawn by an anonymous person to document her personal account of Florida. It indicates various locations where her family members live, where she went to college, and where she likes to protest and attend concerts (Miami, of course). See more of the maps we collected that day in our two curated collections: CC.3a featuring maps of Philadelphia and CC.3b featuring a collection of maps to all kinds of different locations.

Via Scenic New Jersey

In September 2009 the Hand Drawn Map Association attended Philly Zine Fest to collect maps from anyone willing to sit down with us at a folding table and draw. Some people would quietly sketch in front of us while others treated the situation more like getting a drink at a bar--sitting there was simply a reason to share a story with someone willing to listen. This map was drawn by one of our fellow tablers explaining his journey from Brooklyn to Philadelphia for the weekend. Unfortunately, we didn't get to know much about him. Rather than sitting at our table to work, he took this piece of paper, drew his map throughout the day, and handed it to us shortly before we left.

The Great Swiftness

This map by an unknown person is also from DIY Fest. Furthermore, it follows our theme for today: a map to a place you could never find if you went looking. UPDATE: The map was recently identified via our Unidentified Maps blog as Grand Rapids, Michigan. Sweet.

Hi Fi Lo Fi

This anonymous map titled "Hi Fi Lo Fi" is really more of a drawing. It may be of a specific place, but without any text, it's difficult to make a reasonable guess. If you recognize the map in any way, let us know.

Bus Route

Today we are sharing two more maps anonymously submitted to our fileshare. We've been getting a lot of these lately. Let us know if you recognize this place. We're thinking it's San Francisco, but would be more than happy to be corrected. UPDATE: Thanks to Max from Germany who wrote in to correct us! The map is actually Los Angeles. Well, we were sort of close.

X Marks the Spot

Uploaded to our fileshare as, "Alan's Map," this unidentified map is drawn in red pen and includes features such as some kind of tank, time indicators, a route of some kind, and a large X marking the spot. If you know any additional information about this map, please let us know.

Farm Map

It's been a while since we've shared some of our anonymous submissions, so we'll share two of them with you today. The first map has a signature, but we can't quite make it out. John somebody. At any rate, it's a detailed map to someone's farm with lots of interesting details. The legend includes the following items: car crashes, a big fish, deer bones, cow patties, skeet shooting, crawdad hunting, an 80 foot pine tree, a lost log, a really big maple tree, a dock, the pet cemetery, hay bales, and a series of railroad ties. If you know any additional information about this map, please let us know. UPDATE: Thanks to @mariusm who found the location on Google maps: http://tinyurl.com/d84npp

Pool

With a little help from the internet, we figured out this anonymous submission is a map of Doha, the largest city in Qatar. The map appears to guide the user to the clubhouse pool. We think the map looks pretty useful, so if you find yourself in Qatar sometime soon, see if you can find the place and send us some pictures! If you know any information about this map, please let us know.

Office Rescue

This map complete with miserable co-workers and an attack pelican seems appropriate for posting on a Friday morning. The submitter writes, "my map was drawn out of sheer boredom in the 30 minutes I had to wait for my boss to turn up at a recent disciplinary meeting at work. This is the 3rd meeting in two months I've had to attend for minor offense's committed. I'm convinced my boss is arranging them for his own amusement. It is completely accurate (except for the pelican) but not exactly to scale. Hope you like it."

Film and Tape Works

We received this map recently in an envelope from an anonymous person in Chicago. The map was drawn on the back of a fax cover page with two small pink Post-It notes on the back. The notes state: "My boss, owner of the Film and Tape Works, makes these all time. It's hilarious." and "237 E. Ontario to 311 S. Wacker."

National Institute for Medical Research

Another map anonymously submitted without information. We used the Royal Air Force Museum as well as the M1, A41, and A1 to determine this is a map of London. Beyond that, we don't know much else except that we like the contrast between green space and grey suburbia. Update: Jack D. let us know via email that this is a map is of the National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) in the Mill Hill district of London.

Omni

Another map submitted anonymously and without information to our filesharing service. This intricate and detailed drawing looks like a map to an unreal place, but we're not entirely sure. The file was named "Omni." As always, if you know any information about this map, please let us know.

Mother India's Cafe

Every once in a while we get a map uploaded to our fileshare that is completely anonymous and without any information. We're going to start sharing some of those with you as well. Luckily this map is quite self explanatory and we even verified it with Google Maps. The map outlines a path from the Scottish Parliament to Mother India's Cafe. To get there, head west on Canongate and turn left onto South Bridge. You'll probably see the castle in the distance. If anyone knows more information about this map, please let us know.

Entertainment Center

Mfwic sent us this great diagram he made for the wiring of his entertainment center in 1999. he details some of the features below:
- Crude dual-tuner time-shifting setup with 2 VCR's.
- One of the earliest forms of a Home Theatre PC, a Mac Centris 660AV.
- Able to capture Playstation game footage via VCR A.
- The DVD player was a Divx player, and I don't mean the Divx CODEC, it played the now defunct Divx format DVD's.

Unknown Map #2

This map was anonymously uploaded to our drop.io drop box. We would love to hear more about it, so send us an email if it's your map. We know that BP, Dobbies, and ASDA are all stores (well, one's a gas station) in the UK. What about clubhouse? Is that another well known place? A restaurant perhaps? Or is this an actual clubhouse? It seems like a strange location for a childhood clubhouse in such a heavy retail district. At any rate, if you know more than we do, let us know.